


We're Off to See the General

by NanoTwentyFaces



Category: RWBY
Genre: (Past) Ozqrow, Alternate/missing scenes, Cloqwork Family, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Fluff, Forgiveness, Multi, Post-Volume 5, lot of bird dad and farm son, no shipping Oscar with adults
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-25
Updated: 2018-11-01
Packaged: 2019-03-09 06:50:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13476012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NanoTwentyFaces/pseuds/NanoTwentyFaces
Summary: After the Battle of Haven, everyone rests up and prepares to travel to Atlas. Qrow takes care of Oscar while he and Ozpin recover, Yang and Blake are having trouble talking, Weiss is dreading going back to Atlas, but finds advice from someone unexpected, Ren and Nora help Jaune train with his aura, while Ruby takes to helping Sun after he finds out about Leonardo's betrayal.It was a long way to Haven, it may be even longer to Atlas.





	1. Time To Go Home

**Author's Note:**

> This is just my idea of a beginning for Volume 6 or extended ending to Volume 5. A short story about the aftermath of Haven and beginning of the journey to Atlas. 
> 
> (And on another note: while this is canon compliant, I will say right this moment that there won't be any BlackSun or Bumbleby explicit stuff so as to avoid discourse with this because of everything i've seen so far after the Volume ended. I'm neutral in this and just want to write a nice story on my take of what happened after. Freezerburn is tagged and in this story, because I enjoy this ship now because of Volume 5, but I don't have anything explicit planned like a kiss or anything.)
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading~

Police began flooding into the grand hall. Once they cleared the room as secure, several medics followed. They flocked around the children, checking them over, asking them questions. One was fretting over Weiss upon seeing the blood on her dress, another looking at Ruby’s head where she was hit by Emerald, and a third handing Yang her arm, making sure it secures on correctly.  Nora helped a medic look over Ren, while Jaune talked with an officer, glancing in Qrow’s direction a few times; a look that screamed _“you should talk to them, cause I don’t know how to explain all this”_.  

Qrow sighed, letting the relic rest at his side. His eyes flicked back up as a medic approached him, rather quickly he noted, most likely because they saw Oscar unconscious behind him. “Sir, has this boy suffered any injuries?”

“Uh, no,” Qrow answered, “He’s just exhausted. Used too much energy fighting, you know? He only passed out.”

The medic stepped around him, kneeling on the other side of Oscar, Qrow kneeling back down himself. He watched them promptly check Oscar over; moving his hair and tilting his head, straightening out his legs so he was in the full recovery position. They held one of his wrists up, two fingers pressed against it. “Pulse is rapid,” they noted, not knowing if it was to Qrow or themselves, slipping their stethoscope on and laying it on his chest, “breathing is a little unsteady.”

A sudden twitch came to Qrow’s hands hearing the medic talk. The relic left his hand, placed on the floor beside him as he unrealizing moved closer to Oscar. The medic took notice though; an eye trained to see every little thing on a person in front of them and those around them. “Don’t worry,” they said, using a lighter tone, “There’s nothing serious, just like you said, severe exhaustion." They gave him a smile.

Qrow felt himself slowly nod, not looking at medic. Oscar’s face was flushed, cheeks extremely red, small drops of sweat coating his forehead and sides of his face, his body had begun to shake a little with each breath. The twitch returned, having Qrow reach out to lay a hand on his shoulder, as if trying to stop the shaking.

The medic spoke again, rummaging through their bag. “You may already know this being a huntsman, but don’t worry. In this situation, passing out is a defense mechanism for the body. It helps the brain to tell the body to calm and settle as it works to help the body mend and recover. What kind of shape was he in before losing consciousness?”

“Couldn’t stand up, breathing hard,” Qrow listed, “could barely get a word out or lift his head, he was swaying a little where he was kneeling.”

“No hyperventilating?” The medic asked, pulling a vile and a syringe out.

“No,” Qrow answered. “What’s that?” He asked, looking up at them as they filled the syringe.

“A type of sedative.” They answered. “More like a relaxant.” They rolled up Oscar’s sleeve, injecting the needle into his arm. “This should help his body relax and steady more; get that heart rate under control.”

After a few moments, Qrow noticed the shaking cease, Oscar’s breath slowing and evening out. The medic nodded, happily, holding his wrist again. “There we go. Much better.”

Qrow felt himself let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding, the medic packing their tools back into their bag. “Thanks, Doc.”

“There’s an airship outside.” They stated, standing up. “If you’d like we can take him to the local hospital, but it’s not too serious, so you are free to take him home now.”

“That won’t be needed,” Qrow answered, “But, thank you. I’m sure the police will want to talk to all of us before leaving though.”

“Don’t worry about them,” The medic said, kneeling down again, “Medics can outrank officers when it comes to the health of those involved in an incident, and I say that you are taking this boy home right away for some much-needed rest.” They reached into their bag, pulling out a blanket, handing it to Qrow. “Here, don’t want him catching a cold on the way back.”

“Thanks,” he took the blanket, “You wouldn’t mind relaying to them that i’ll speak with them as soon as possible.” paused, taking a deep breath. “But, these kids take my priority. Gods know that if anything happened to Ruby or Yang,” He gestured over his shoulder at them, “their father would have my head.”

“No problem.” They smiled, walking off.

Qrow unrolled the blanket, carefully lifting Oscar’s back off the floor and wrapping it around him, making sure his head stayed upright, resting against his chest. “Hey. Jaune.” Qrow called over his shoulder. Jaune jogged over to him, stopping, glancing down at Oscar. “He’s fine,” Qrow assured him, “I need you to carry that for me, will ya?” He nodded at the lamp beside him.

“Oh, yeah.” Jaune said, kneeling down to pick up the lamp. “No problem.”

“ _Don’t_ drop it.” Qrow said, narrowing his eyes for a second.

“Right,” Jaune nervously answered, tightening his grip on the handle.

“Let the others know we’re leaving. We’re going back to the house.” Qrow turned his head away, hooking an arm under Oscar’s legs, lifting him off the floor. He shifted the hold on his shoulder, making sure his head still rested securely up against his chest.

“What about the police?” Jaune asked, looking back at them scattered around the room. “They want to know everything.”

“Don’t worry about them,” Qrow said, “Medics will take care of that. We’ll talk to them later. Right now you all need some rest.” He tilted his head at Jaune. “That goes for you too.”

Jaune fidgeted for moment, but nodded, turning to go tell the others.

“Alright, kid,” Qrow breathed out, nudging Oscar in his arms, “let’s get you home.”


	2. Good to Be Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rest of the teams begin to return home for much needed rest, but not before some needed words are spoken.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2 is finally here and it's actually much shorter than I originally intended. A lot of stuff had to be pushed back to later chapters since some things in this chapter came out longer than expected and I wanted to get the chapter out soon.

Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang were still huddled together on the floor as Jaune approached them. They weren’t saying much as much as just looking at one another, leaning into the other’s touch. Jaune couldn’t help but smiling watching them; especially Ruby. They haven’t been together in a long time. The night of the Fall of Beacon Ruby’s team was taken from her, and she didn’t even know it until she woke up at home. There were no goodbyes, no apologies, no time to mourn. Just a call from her one morning telling him she was going to Mistral, that she was going to find the ones who were behind the attack, she was going to help find them and stop them no matter what. 

“Guys,” Jaune called, walking up to them, giving them a smile, “We, uh, Qrow says we’re going home.”

 

_ Without even a second thought, before she could hang up, he said he was going too, they all were; him, Nora, and Ren. He couldn’t let her go alone, and he wasn’t going to just sit around when he could do something to save even one life. _

 

Ruby smiled up at him. A tired smile, but still a smile, a genuine one. Her face suddenly beamed, looking back down at Blake in front of her. “Oh, Blake! You haven’t seen the house we’re staying in, it’s huge! Although, I’m not sure if everyone you brought can fit.” She joked, glancing over Blake’s shoulder at all the faunus outside.

 

_ Throughout their journey to Mistral, Ruby stayed strong, even if it was a false mask of hoe she truly felt. She was determined, positive, and headstrong. The Ruby Rose they traveled to Mistral with was not the same Ruby from Beacon.  _

 

“Maybe,” Blake started,her ears drooping and perking back up, “if we made some bunk beds there would be more room.” 

 

_ This Ruby was someone who didn’t hold back anymore, she led without fear now, she saw the world for what it was truly was, but that didn’t change how she tried to make everyone happy, how she tried to protect and comfort those that needed it. Her kindness stayed no matter how much was taken from her. Her school, her dream, her friends, and her team were all taken from her and a new role was placed on her, but all the while she never expressed hate. There was anger within her, but she never let it take over, she stayed true to herself.  _

 

Ruby’s eyes went wide, gasping and crawling forward on her knees to Blake, “Blake! Your bow is gone!” Her hands reached up, innocently petting her cat ears. “Oh, they’re still so cute!” She cooed. Blake just smiled and laughed, resting her hands around Ruby, holding her up as she was still swaying a little. 

“I figured it was time for a little change.” She said, glancing at Weiss and Yang. “And I think the outfit works better without it.”

 

_ He expected Ruby to cry if her team ever reunited. He was half-right, she cried when Yang and Weiss found them. But, he guessed, in a moment like this, Ruby could only be happy. They just won a battle against Salem, got the relic, and got her team back. Ruby had sadness nestled in her. Sadness that she hid for a long time. Sadness that she eventually let out whether it was to him, by herself, or others. But she held out hope, and in the end it payed off.  _

 

“Come on guys,” Yang spoke up, patting Ruby’s shoulder, “let’s go home already.”

“Please.” Weiss agreed, rising up. She waited, watching Ruby carefully as she and Blake stood up themselves. 

“Ruby, are you sure you’re okay?” Blake asked, hands still hovering around her. Ruby’s legs were shaking, her shoulders were slacked. The adrenaline was obviously coming to a full stop and the exhaustion setting in. 

“Yeah,” Ruby breathed out, trying to keep up the happy facade, “totally fine.”

“Ruby, please,” Weiss crossed her arms, “what kind of leader doesn’t take care of themselves? You need to take it easy right now. You’re tired.” Ruby managed a smile at Weiss’ quip, and smirk she was giving her.

“Come here, sis,” Yang stepped closer, bringing Ruby into her vicinity, Blake’s hands slowly pulling away, “I can carry you back.”

“Noooo,” Ruby droned out, now clearly drained, rubbing an eye, “I can walk too…..it’s not that far.” A yawn escaped, her eyes drooping. 

“Nope,” Yang sounded with a pop, “Come on, i’ll make it a piggyback ride. You know you like those.” She pulled Ruby’s hood over her head, leaning down to smile at her under it. 

“Really?” Ruby smiled. “Okay…..”

Without anymore resistance, Yang turned around, letting Ruby climb onto her back. She smiled warmly as Ruby’s arms linked firmly around her neck, head nuzzling into it and her hair. A second later a muffled groan sounded from her. “Eugghhh….” Ruby slurred, “you smell so sweaty.”

“Hey, that’s the smell of hard work.”Yang bounced her, tilting her head at her. 

“Then why does hard work smell so bad…?” She lightly kicked at Yang’s thigh.

“Well, we can reward ourselves with nice hot showers in the morning.” Yang answered, starting them towards the entrance. 

“Yaayyyyy~,” Ruby droned, trying to make a thumbs up, but just waving her hand up for a moment. 

  
  


Blake stood still, watching them go, Ren, Nora, and Jaune following after. She smiled, hugging her arm again. Almost a year away from them, but at the same time it felt like they hadn’t. It felt just like the days at Beacon. It was like she’d temporarily entered a dream and was finally awake. 

“I knew you would come back.” Weiss’ voice sounded next to her. She rested a hand on her shoulder, smiling; an honest smile. “Even if you were a little late.” She propped her hands on her hips, raising her head at her so smug and stilted. “Do you always have to be so dramatic?” 

They began to walk after the others, Blake scoffing playfully, “Someone has to balance out your properness, Heiress.”

Weiss cocked her head, a stiff smile, her hands folded together in front of her, “Not exactly ‘Heiress’.”

“Huh? What does that mean?” Blake raised her brow, ears perked.

“Nothing.” Weiss brushed her off. “Not important right now. It’s just good to have you back.” Weiss unfolded her hands, raising her head back up at Blake. 

Blake sighed, relieved. She looked up at the moon as they exited the grand hall. It’s broken face shined down brightly, illuminating the courtyard along with the police airships and lamps. “I’m glad to be back. I-” She held her hands together, fingers fidgeting, “I really missed you. All of you. And i’m sorry……” She stopped, taking a deep breath, “I’m sorry I left.”

“Blake…..” Weiss stepped in front of her, taking her hands, “I made you promise me at Beacon that you would talk to us if something was wrong.”

Blake snapped her head up, ears drooping, “I know! But-I ran, I left again-”

Weiss held up a hand, stopping her, “Uhp, bup, bup-You did leave. But I understand why, and Ruby understands too. So there’s no need to apologize.” She lowered her hand, eyes casting down to the side for a moment. “I promised Yang that I would be there for her, and also to you whenever you’d come back.” She squeezed Blake’s hands, smiling. “What matters is that we’re all together now, like Ruby said.”

Blake bit her lip. Her shoulders finally slacked and a small smile crept out. “Okay.”

“Good.” Weiss nodded her head, slowly letting go of Blake’s hand. “Now, please, let’s go home.” She stepped back to Blake’s side, lightly pushing her forward with a hand on her shoulder. 

 

“Our daughter certainly has made some good friends.” Kali chimed, looping an arm around Ghira’s. Ghira hummed in agreement, resting a hand on hers. He glanced over to Sun and Ilia, giving them a warm smile where they stood, eagerly watching from the doorway of the hall. At least Ilia was. 

Sun has suddenly becoming increasingly quiet and rigid. He turned, looking around at the grand hall, watching police clearing off the area, examining everything, a few gesturing up to the doors towards Lionheart’s office. Untangling himself from Kali, Ghira approached him. 

“Is everything alright?” He asked standing beside him. 

Sun flinched, “Huh? Oh yeah,” he took a half-step away, rubbing the back of his neck, “just taking it all in, kind of….”

“This is your school is it not?” Ghira gestured to the room. “I wouldn’t doubt that you would be in some way troubled by this despite the victory.”

“Kind of,” Sun muttered, rocking side-to-side on his feet, “Guess it seems like it was just yesterday when Beacon fell, and…..” he shook his head, sighing, “I don’t know.”

“You weren’t expecting to win, but more prepared for another loss,” Ghira stated more than asked, clapping a hand on Sun’s shoulder, “When there has been so much failure, it is hard to believe when success is accomplished. But what you and Blake did, you persevered and helped save this school and everyone else here. It’s scary to think what could have happened, but now that reality is gone, and this one is here. It’s a new day, a new path that you’ve begun to pave in more ways than one. Take solace in that, Mr. Wukong.” 

Sun took a deep breath, taking another look at the grand hall, taking in every piece; every splintered pillar, shattered window, cracked door, burned and scuffed inch of wood on the floor. “Well,” he started, shrugging a shoulder a small smile, “It’s good to be home at least.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. A lot more was planned for this chapter, but I overestimated (underestimated?) myself in that it could all fit in, so I found a good place to end this chapter with it still having good length. Originally Ghira and Sun's short talk wasn't planned but it just flowed into it; as well as a reason why it was so short, not much else was said. 
> 
> I love feedback and critiquing so as I may improve on my writing, so commenting is appreciated! Don't be shy! <3


	3. Dawn of the Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A morning is said to always bring something new. A fresh start to whatever happened yesterday.
> 
> Everyone settles in back at the house, and the calm after the Battle of Haven seems to finally be taking place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been awhile! Had to take a hiatus because of school and other things, but I finally found time and vibe to work on this story again. This chapter was cut in half, and the second half will be chapter 4 to help keep my work time at a good pace on these chapters.~

“Home sweet home……” Qrow droned, pushing open the door with his hip. Jaune hurried past to hold it open as everyone else filed into the house. With hushed yawns, each made their way to their rooms, weapons carefully, but promptly dropped beside the doors. For a moment Blake hesitated to follow everyone else, lingering in the doorway, until a hand on each shoulder, belonging to Sun and Weiss, nudged her inside, soft smiles. 

“Uh, make yourselves at home,” Qrow called over his shoulder at the stairs, “There should be just enough rooms left, or the couches.”

“Ghira and I can take the couches,” Kali said, turning to the rest of them, “you kids deserve a well rest after tonight.”

“Are you sure?” Weiss asked. “You both really helped tonight too.”

“Of course,” Kali answered with a smile, “It’s no trouble at all. Now you all get upstairs and to bed already.”

They nodded, Weiss leading them upstairs. Sun and Ilia settled into the last bedroom at the end of the hall. 

“All the rest of the rooms are filled up,” Weiss began, leading Blake back down the hall, “but you can room with me tonight. The bed should be big enough for two.”

“Weiss, you don’t have to-” Blake began, holding her hands up.

“I will not have one of my teammates, who just came back, sleeping on the floor.” Weiss interrupted her, holding up a finger at her again. “It’s no big deal and I am gladly offering.”

Blake sighed, knowing there was no way of changing the decision, “Okay, we’ll share.”

“Good!” Weiss clapped her hands together, smiling. “Now come on, I want to get out of this stained dress already.”

Just as they arrived at Weiss and Yang’s room, Yang emerged partly from the room next door, combat gear and outfit already stripped off, leaving her in her black pants and orange top. She blinked at both of them, seemingly surprised. “Oh, Weiss.” 

“Blake’s going to room with us tonight. All the rooms are filled up.” Weiss said. 

“Oh, okay,” Yang glanced over at Blake for a second. “You can just take my bed tonight.”

“What about you?” Weiss asked. 

“I’m just gonna bunk with Ruby tonight.” She opened the door further, revealing a sleeping Ruby, in her pajamas, still clung tightly around her neck. “Kind of no choice.” She said with a small smile.

“I see now.” Weiss said with a smile. “Well, goodnight then.” She sauntered off into their room, leaving Blake still standing out in the hall. 

“Um….thanks,” Blake began, looking down and holding her arm again. Yang just nodded where she stood. “Uh-goodnight then.” Blake nodded back,still looking down, hurrying off into Weiss’s room.

  
  


Qrow opened the door to his and Oscar’s room, flipping the light on with his elbow. “Okay, kid,” he muttered, “time for bed. Probably way past your bedtime anyway.” He chuckled to himself lightly, moving over to the bed. He gently set Oscar down, taking off his gloves and boots, pulling the covers overtop of him. 

Reaching back, Qrow pulled Harbinger from his back, wordlessly turning and placing it beside his own bed. Turning back, he pulled Ozpin’s cane from his back, running a hand lightly over it. “We did it,” he whispered, staring into the cog pieces, thumb rubbing against the floral engravings on the handle. “We did it, Oz,” he whispered again, “Heh, I might even call us lucky.”

He huffed out a breath, letting his hands drop to his sides. He brought a hand up running it through his hair, looking up at the ceiling and looking back down. “Okay, kid. I don’t know how long that stuff’ll keep you asleep for, but I need my four hours.” Placing the cane on the nightstand, turning on his heel, he sauntered over to his own bed, pulling out his flask and throwing back a long drink as he dropped onto it. 

  
  


It was early morning, but the house was already bustling getting ready for the day and breakfast being prepared. Ren headed the kitchen, Nora beside him, handing the drowsy chef a cup of coffee with a beaming smile, skipping off to bring over their prepped ingredients. Weiss poured cups for the rest, her own special blend, but careful to not accidentally hand one to Nora. Sun graciously drank his, exuberant about how good it is, never knowing how good coffee could be. 

As Blake ambled into the kitchen, brushing out her hair with her fingers, she was met with a cup being held out to her. 

“Tea~” Weiss said, promptly, placing the cup in her hands. 

“Thanks,” Blake said, a little surprised, taking a sip. 

“Blake, have you tried this?!” Sun popped up behind her, still holding his cup. “It’s amazing! I haven’t had much coffee in my life, too bitter-but this-” he pointed at the cup, “-this is delicious!”

“Okay,” Blake plucked the cup from Sun’s hand, and replacing it with her tea, handing the coffee back to Weiss, “maybe you shouldn’t have so much.” Sun raised an eyebrow at her as she and Weiss let out a small laugh. 

“Morning,” Ilia sounded, walking down the stair, tying her hair up. 

“Morning, Ilia,” Blake replied, smiling, “Did you sleep okay?”

“Yeah, you?”

“Yeah, I think we all slept pretty well.” Blake said, looking around at the others. 

Weiss spoke up from where she stood, “Ilia, was it? Would you like some coffee? I made it myself.”

“Huh?” Ilia leaned over to see Weiss. “Oh, thanks, but-uh- i’m more of a tea person.” Ilia replied, suddenly looking away fidgeting with her fingers. 

“ _ You _ take this then-” Sun spoke up, shoving the cup of tea from Blake into her hands. She uttered a thanks, taking a sip. 

“Ilia,” Blake said, taking a step forward.

“Hm, what?” Ilia said, looking up from her sip.

Blake let out a small chuckle, “You missed a piece,” reaching forward, she tucked a thin lock of hair behind her ear for her, “to this day you still can’t seem to get it.” She turned away, smiling. “I’m going to help Ren and Nora make breakfast.”

“You cook?” Weiss questioned, smirking, “Since when?”

“You were all too busy eating in the cafeteria at school, never got the chance.” Blake replied, smirking back. 

“Hey, Ilia,” Sun crouched down slightly pointing at her face, “your specks on your cheeks are pink! What does that mean? Each color means something doesn’t it?”

“Nothing!” Ilia quickly said, pushing his hand down. “Come on, we can set the table for them.”

“You all are certainly a lively bunch.” Ghira’s voice hummed. “Good morning to you, Miss Schnee.” He gave a loose bow, a warm smile. 

“Oh-uh,” Weiss stammered, caught off guard by the gesture, “Good morning to you too, Mr. and Mrs. Belladonna.” Giving a quick, small bow in return. “Would either of you like some coffee? Or tea?”

“Tea would be lovely.” Ghira replied. “With sugar, please.” Weiss gave a nod in reply, grabbing another cup from the cabinet. 

“Have any of you seen Qrow yet this morning?” Kali asked. All shook their heads. 

Ren spoke up from the stove, “He’s still sleeping upstairs.”

Nora chimed in beside him, “He’s always getting up early, even for mine and Ren’s standards, so we figured we’d let him sleep in today.”

“And by sleeping in,” Sun added, “she means we may have snuck into his room and turned off all his alarms on his scroll.”

“I see,” Kali said, making her way over to the stairs. “I’ll go upstairs and check on him.”

  
  


“Qrow….” Kali shook his shoulder gently where he lay, a blanket haphazardly thrown over him, from no doubt the kids that morning. After several shakes, he began to rouse. Groaning, he rubbed his eyes, leaning up on one elbow. 

“I’m up….I’m up…..uh-what time is it?”

“Still early,” Kali answered, “Kids thought they’d let you sleep in a little.”

Now Qrow was sitting up fully, pushing his hair back, stretching. “Not much about sleeping in for me anymore. Something up?”

Kali folded her hands in front of her. “The Mistral Police stopped by a little while ago, before any of the kids were up.”

“What?” Qrow shot up, trying to keep his voice down, “Are they still here? Did they try to talk to any of the kids?” He fumbled with his shirt, reaching for his cape hung on the headboard. 

“No, no,” Kali held up her hands, trying to calm him, “they only came by briefly. They were asking to speak to us already,” she paused, “more specifically, you. Something about the Mistral Council.”

Qrow didn’t look at her as he secured his cape, sighing. “Damn council…..” He slipped his flask into his shirt, taking a quick swig from it. “I’ll take care of it.” He grabbed Harbinger, moving toward the door, stopping as he passed Oscar’s bed. Looking over, he was still asleep, unmoved from how he’d left him last night. Without word, Qrow moved over to the bed, crouching down. He brushed the hair over on his forehead, promptly laying the back of his hand on it. After a few moments, Qrow let out a low exhale, removing his hand, pulling up the blankets slightly.  

A parent can recognize another. There’s a certain feel or aura to it. And Kali caught that same feeling in that moment. Blake had described the man known as “Qrow” a few times, from her stories about Beacon; Ruby and Yang’s uncle who seemed to have a slight drinking and authority problem. She had only just met Qrow the night before, but in the minute of watching the man be a bit frantic and irritated to suddenly calm and focused all from one child in the room said it all. Kali watched as he stayed crouched by the bed, silent, just focusing on the young boy, like he was taking everything in on every detail, like the hawk eyes of a parent. 

Finally, she spoke up, “I can keep an eye on him while you’re gone.”

“Hm?” He sounded, being broken from the focus, looking over his shoulder at her. 

She moved forward so she was standing beside him. “I’m a mother, I can look after him no problem while you take care of everything with the council. So you don’t have to worry.”

“I’m-” Qrow stood back up, running a hand through his hair, an abrupt cough, “I’m not worried-he’s fine. Just you know, quick check-you know how it is-”

“You know, Mr. Branwen,” Kali interrupted, “If I don’t know it already, i’d think you were this boy’s father.”

“What?” Qrow raised an eyebrow, “No-i’m not-he’s not-”

“I’m a mother,” she repeated, leaning in, “I know exactly what a worried parent looks like, and you are giving off the exact vibe.”

“You don’t know the half of it…..”Qrow muttered, rubbing his neck.

“Either way, you go to this council business and i’ll stay here and keep an eye on him until you get back.” 

“Alright.” Qrow sighed. “Thanks.”

 

Quietly, Qrow opened the door to the bedroom, letting the incoming sunlight guide him through. On the far side, tucked and clung together tightly lay Ruby and Yang; Ruby’s arms around Yang’s neck, Yang’s arm cradling her sister. He smiled down at the two of them; as close as ever. Seeing it gave him reminisces of when they were younger and would do the exact same thing; most of the time, them pushing their beds together to make one big bed, especially during the winter when it was colder. Ruby always said Yang made for better warmth than her blankets. 

Leaning down, he gently laid a kiss on each of their foreheads, heading back out of the room, careful to shut the door quietly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to say here, thank you for patience in my updates with this story. I'm glad to be working on it again, because I really do love this story and the ideas I have for it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, it was more lightheartedness, but some set-up for more character interactions i'm excited for.~
> 
> <3


	4. Catching Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been so long since everyone's been together. It's time to do some catching up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is probably the fastest i've updated a story, but I really love how this chapter came out. I ended up adding a couple scenes that weren't in the initial plan, but came to be with the flow the scenes were going~

Ruby slowly opened her eyes, yawning. Sunlight streamed into the room, lighting it up enough to see. Yang was still asleep next to her, her arm around her waist. She pulled an arm from around Yang’s neck to rub her eyes. She sat up, carefully removing her other arm to stretch. Reaching over Yang, she picked up her scroll, checking the time. It was still kind of early.

“Curse you school for early mornings…..” She muttered, laying the scroll down on the bed. “Yang….” she nudged with her elbow.

Yang shifted, blinking awake at her sister’s prompting. “Hmmm, yeah….? Is it seriously morning already?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” Ruby answered, yawning again, “Too many mornings getting up at Beacon makes it hard to sleep in now.” She sniffed the air as Yang sat up, stretching. “And _I_ think I smell breakfast downstairs.”

“Nice.” Yang said, reaching over, grabbing her arm from the nightstand. “Well, let’s go down and grab some.”

“Jaune!” Ruby threw a pillow across the room to the other bed where Jaune was still sleeping, pillow hugged close. He jerked awake, blinking at the pillow and then Ruby.

“Up and at ‘em, Sunshine,” Yang called, “Ruby smells breakfast downstairs.”

“Cool…” Jaune droned, his head dropped back into his pillow, giving a thumbs up. “5 more minutes….”

 

                                                                      ~                                                                                          ~

 

Securing the silver, rose emblem on her cape, Ruby stepped out of the bedroom, brushing off her skirt.

“I’ll meet you down in a minute, Ruby.” Yang called from the room.

“I’ll save you a spot.” Ruby called back, heading down the hall. Halfway down the hall a figure emerged from another room, the two almost running into each other. It was Kali.

“Oh, hey Mrs. Belladonna,” Ruby gave a little wave, “I don’t think we got the chance to actually meet last night. So-uh-hi!”

She gave a light laugh, “You all were exhausted, rightfully so. But I know that you’re Ruby Rose, the leader of your team.”

“Yep!” Ruby gave a salute. “Leader of Team RWBY, and before you ask, yes it gets a little confusing sometimes.”

“Blake, and your friend Sun, told me all about the adventures of your team. It sounds like you all got into your fair share of trouble.”

Ruby gave a small laugh, “We may have broken a few rules, but we stopped a lot of bad guys.”

“You’re all very talented huntsmen and huntresses. It’s……” She paused, folding her hands in front of her, “a shame you all didn’t get to finish your time at Beacon.”

“Yeah…” Ruby let her shoulders slack, looking at the floor, a sad smile, “I miss Beacon…..” She brought her head back up, putting on more of a smile, “But all of us are together again here, and even with you! So, that’s all that matters.” Stopping, Ruby peered past Kali into the room. “Is….Oscar still asleep?”

Kali turned, stepping out of the way to let Ruby into the room. “He is. Your uncle left earlier and I told him I would keep an eye on him while he’s gone.”

“Is he okay? They fought really hard last night, and I know he took some hard hits, and he’s pretty new to fighting and……” Ruby trailed off, looking over at Kali and back down at him.

“He’s fine,” Kali stepped forward, laying a hand on Ruby’s head, gently running it down the back, “The medics took care of him last night, he was just exhausted and needs a lot of rest.”

Ruby let out a sigh of relief, leaning just slightly into the touch of Kali’s hand on her head. “That’s good,” she perked back up, “I’ll save some breakfast for him in case he wakes up anytime soon!”

“That’d be good.” Kali replied. “I believe they were making pancakes and a few other things, and Weiss made coffee.”

“Really? Weiss makes the best coffee!” Ruby cheered, hurrying out of the room. She stopped at the door, turning back. “Where _did_ Uncle Qrow go? Did he go back to Haven?”

“The police wanted to speak with him about the attack on Haven, and the Mistral council too. He didn’t say when he would be back, understandably.” Kali answered.

Ruby nodded. “Are you gonna come get some breakfast too? Ren’s cooking is really good.”

“If you say so, then I won’t pass up.” Kali smiled.

 

                                                                                                 ~                                                                               ~

 

Really?! A sea dragon Grimm?!” Ruby exclaimed from her seat at the table.

“Those are named “Sea Feilong”,” Ren clarified, “Sailors are known to run into them a lot far out into the ocean.”

“It was huge! You guys should have seen this thing!” Sun said. “And you should have seen Blake, she was amazing!”

“It was a team effort.” Blake said, poking at her plate, a playful smile. “Even if I did have to save you.” Sun only gave a toothy grin in return.

Everyone had gathered for breakfast, eager to formally catch up with one another. They hadn’t been together for almost an entire year.

“So, you were at home this whole time?” Weiss asked.

“Yes,” Blake answered, “I thought it was finally time to.”

“Menagerie, huh?” Jaune spoke from his seat down the table. “My parents always wanted to visit there at least once.”

Ruby spoke again, “We never really did ask where you were from.”

Nora chimed in, “And your dad is the chief!”

“It’s not that big of a deal.” Blake tried to brush off the statement. “Just never came up in conversation.”

“Yeah,” Sun said, “Except that we kind of thought you were an orphan the entire time. At least I did.” Blake raised an eyebrow at him. Sun gave an awkward smile, taking a drink from his glass.

“Tell us more about Menagerie!” Ruby said, eyes filled with wonder and curiosity.

“Well……”

 

“Did you really?” Weiss sat in her seat, mouth agape. “You set your own house on fire?”

“I needed to see,” Blake explained, “not many any other options at that moment.”

“But, faunus have nearly perfect sight in the dark.” Jaune mentioned.

Ilia spoke up for the first time, beside Blake, “We do, but being able to see in the dark doesn’t help much when your opponent can do this-” Ilia’s skin suddenly changed to completely black, immediately reverting. Utters and gasps of ‘wow’ echoed around the table.

“You’re a chameleon Faunus! Oh, that’s so cool, even your hair changes color!” Ruby squealed form her seat, looking at Ilia in awe.

“Thanks…” Ilia pushed at her hair, trying to hide a smile from the comment.

Yang spoke up, “So your Blake’s friend from Menagerie?”

“Yeah, I lived in Atlas for most of my life, and then moved back.” Ilia answered, avoiding everyone’s eyes. “I met Blake then. Had a rough time after she left and went to Beacon……”

“-But it’s all okay now.” Blake took over the conversation. “We took down Corsic and Fennec, that’s when we started getting everyone ready to come here and help.”

“Well,” Weiss began, “I think it’s wonderful to meet another of Blake’s friends. You said you lived in Atlas for awhile? Did you go to one of the academies?”

Unmeeting her eyes, Ilia fidgeted in her seat. “Yeah, it was nice. Didn’t like the uniforms though. Not enough color for me.”

“I know what you mean.” Weiss said, a wistful sigh. “I hated them too. Those skirts were terrible, not right for combat, at least in my opinion.”

“Needs more frills for you, right?” Yang jabbed, smirking.

“Oh, ha ha.”

“You guys really arrived in time last night.” Jaune began, taking a bite of his breakfast. “You might have been the only reason we won.”

“Hey,” Sun said, “We didn’t even know _you_ guys were going to be there. Could say the same to you.”

Ghira spoke, “Well, you all fought hard, and earned a well-deserved victory.”

“Not to mention,” Nora added, largely gesturing over at Jaune, “Jaune here finally unlocked his semblance!”

“Better late than never I guess….” Jaune shied away from the comment, rubbing the back of his head.

“More like ‘just in time’,” Yang said, “you saved Weiss.”

“My hero~” Weiss sang with a smirk.

“Not to change the subject,” Blake said, “but who was that boy with all you? And why did he have Professor Ozpin’s cane?”

“Yeah,” Sun looks around the table, “he’s not even down here.”

“Oscar’s upstairs, still asleep.” Ruby answers. “The fight took a lot out of him.”

“No kidding, after taking on that big guy, Hazel, no doubt he’d be exhausted. I guess I should say Ozpin, though. He was the one fighting.”

“Wait.” Sun raised an eyebrow at him. “ _Ozpin_ ? _The_ Professor Ozpin? Green suit, tiny glasses, and mop hair _Ozpin_?”

“I thought he was still missing.” Blake added.

Ruby, Weiss, Yang, Jaune, Ren, and Nora all look at each other.

“I guess we need to explain.” Weiss said, turning back to them.

 

                                                                                                 ~                                                                           ~

“-So Ozpin was a really old man and gave the four girls some of his magic, making them the first maidens, and now Cinder is one of them and someone in Raven’s camp was the Spring maiden, but now we don’t know, and Ozpin’s soul is still with Oscar’s and they do this really cool, but weird switchy-thing where their eyes glow when it happens.”  Ruby took a breath, holding up the picture. A pile of other pieces of paper lay all around on the floor, others tacked onto a board behind her; all drawn in crayon. The picture she was holding looked like Oscar and Ozpin.

Blake, Sun, and Ilia sat on the couch, gaping at Ruby. “So…..” Blake began, “these maidens are that powerful, and are the only ones that can get these relics…..”

Ruby nodded.

“...And we have one of these relics?” Sun added.

Ruby nodded again. “The lamp thing that Yang brought out of the vault.”

“The Relic of Knowledge.” Ren clarified.

“And only this Spring Maiden could get it out of the vault?” Ilia asked. “So how did _we_ get it?”

“The maidens must have fought in the vault while we were fighting in the grand hall,” Ren said, “Raven Branwen had the Spring Maiden with her, and when Yang when down there-”

“They were both gone.” Yang finished, abruptly. “Cinder was gone, Vernal was dead…..” She paused, looking towards the floor, “.......and Raven was gone too.”

“So,” Sun started, “we don’t know for sure if Cinder is dead too.”

“It’s uncertain.” Ren answered. “It’s obvious she didn’t win whatever battle took place in the vault, but with no clear answer as to what happened to her, we can’t truly know.”

Silently, Yang got up from her seat, walking off. No one took notice, except for Weiss, watching her go.

“All this magic,” Blake leaned back in her seat, “all of this was going on right beneath our noses. Our headmaster was- _is_ thousands of years old and has magic too.”

“This is nuts….” Sun sighed.

“Oh yeah!” Ruby dug through the pictures on the floor, picking one up. “He also gave my Uncle and Yang’s mom magic too! They can become birds!”

Blake, Sun, and Ilia just stared in shock, again.

                                                                                          ~                                                        ~

 

Weiss set the stack of papers on the table, heaving a sigh. “Finally, all of these are cleaned up. You could have been a little neater with your “presentation”.”

“There was a lot to cover!” Ruby said setting another stack on the table. “And _I_ think it went well.” She said matter-of-fact tone in her statement.

“You spent _two hours_ just drawing up the pictures for it.” Weiss jabbed, holding up one.

“Visuals help it be less confusing.” Ruby grabbed the picture from her.

Weiss rolled her eyes, smiling, “You never change.” Ruby stuck out her tongue in response. Bounding off.

Weiss chuckled to herself. She turned back to the stack of papers on the table, skimming over the pile. On the top piece drawn was, by the red and black, Raven standing with Vernal, portal behind them and her sword raised. Moving on, she stopped, pulling out another piece; two pieces taped together, like a 2 page book. Drawn side by side were Yang and Raven. In the picture Yang’s eyes were their usual lilac. Flipping to the piece underneath, Yang’s eyes were red, matching Raven’s. Weiss’s fingers trailed over the picture.

She thought back to the camp, where it was just her and Yang. When she came face-to-face with Raven Branwen, truly. The split moments where Yang’s eyes had flashed red. Before, Yang’s eyes changing didn’t mean anything to her, just a part of her semblance. But, seeing Yang confronting her mother, seeing the pure rage come out like she’d never seen before, changed it. There was always more to Yang than met the eye, she just never knew what it was.

Then, Yang just leaving the conversation about what happened at Haven without a word. She barely said a word through all of it. The tone of her voice, the posture of her body, and choice of words. There was something else behind it, like when talking about Blake before.

Weiss’s head snapped up at the sound of footsteps; Yang. Wordlessly and without looking at her, she walked towards the stairs to the training room. Following her movement, Weiss stepped over as to walk in front of her, blocking her path, pictures still in hand. Her free hand immediately had itself around Yang’s left wrist, looking up at her.

_“And I know we’re not as close…..”_

“Yang….,” She started, “are you okay?”

Yang’s gaze drifted around her, once down at her hand holding the drawings. Finally, it settled on Weiss, “Yeah,” she answered, “just going outside for some air.” She continued past her, the grip of Weiss’s hand floating off from her wrist. Weiss sighed, watching as she disappeared down the stairs.

                                                                                   ~                                                   ~

 

Hours later, the front door pushed open, an agitated and groaning Qrow, trudging in.

“Uncle Qrow!” Ruby cheered, running up to him. “You were gone all day. Soooo, how did it go with the police and all?”

“It went.” Qrow sneered, pulling out his flask, downing the last of its contents. “Gather everyone up, we’ve got a lot to talk about.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, a bit longer than the last one, but I love the things I added (which was a longer and more meaningful interaction between Ruby and Kali, and the Weiss and Yang part at the end). Once again, i'm excited for the things for the next chapter as the ending for this chapter can tease at. 
> 
> <3


	5. Truths and Lies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Qrow reveals all to the group of his meeting with the council, and aftershock of Haven's defense. Some news is harder to share than others.....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moved into a new place, conventions are over, so writing can take place again! I also was waiting to see what kind of V6 sneak peeks we would get at RTX, in case it was something to adjust with this fic (since i'm trying to be canon-compliant).
> 
> Also, i've adjusted and edited the tags for the relationships after re-examining the story in whole. The story is focusing less on shipping so I took out the ship tags and replaced them with the general relationships that will be seen in the story (and will update them later if need be).

“So, you met with the council today?” Ren started up the conversation once everyone settled into the living room. 

Qrow took one more drink from his flask, placing it back into his pocket. “Yep,” he answered, “and as you can all probably guess: they weren’t happy.”

Yang crossed her arms, “With everything that went down, it’s no wonder.”

“What did they say?” Jaune asked. 

“Well,” Qrow started, “let’s just start with it’s better that you kids weren’t there. They were wanting to talk to all of us, but they had to settle for just me.”

 

_ “Alright, i’m here!” Qrow droned, raking a hand through his hair, stepping through the large doors of the meeting room. He stopped in the middle of the room, raising his head to look at the council; five members in total. All sat above him in their seats, hands clasped together in front. Like a court jury, judging him upon their pedestals.  _

_ “Thank you for coming, Mr. Branwen,” one spoke, a man with his hair tied back into the traditional bun adorned by many natives of Anima; Councilman Hwan, “we appreciate you coming at such an urgent request.” _

_ Qrow simply tilted his chin up, briefly raising an eyebrow acknowledging the statement. Another man spoke from a few seats down, hair short and small mustache, voice more nasally than the other; Councilman Souma. “Is it only you? We expected your entire party to be here for this discussion.” _

_ “The only person you need to talk to is  _ **_me_ ** _.” Qrow stated, his expression unchanging.  _

_ A woman spoke now, her hair shoulder length, one side adorning a braid; Councilwoman Maral. “What transpired last night was no small matter and we need as much information as we can.” _

_ “And I told you,” Qrow repeated, “the only person you need to talk to is me. Anything that happened at the school last night I can tell you myself.” _

_ A second woman spoke from beside the first man, hair tied back in a low bun with glasses; Councilwoman Sevan. “We need to speak to the students that were present at this attack-” _

_ “And I don’t need you all breathing down their necks for info,” Qrow cut her off, “Those kids have been through enough right now, and i’m not subjecting them to an interrogation.” _

_ “Is that what you see this as?” Maral questioned, her gaze unwavering down at him. _

_ Qrow gave a short ‘hmph’, placing his hands in his pockets. “We’ve done this song and dance before. Every time Ozpin would come here, you’d all be raking him for anything you could get. Always wanting ‘this’ and ‘that’, and whatever he told you wasn’t good enough.” _

_ Souma interjected, “And I recall every one of those times, you were just a tag-along; Ozpin’s “pet”. Every council of Remnant is certainly aware of your unwavering loyalty to the former Headmaster, and just because he isn’t present anymore, does not mean you can suddenly make all the decisions.”  _

_ Qrow took a step forward, his chin down, eyes angled straight up at the man, “I think it does, especially when it comes to those kids. So, Councilman, the answer is still “no”,” he took his flask out taking a swig from it, “now how about we get on with it already?” _

 

“They  _ really _ wanted to talk to us….” Ruby said, looking at the ground. 

“They did,” Qrow answered, “but they didn’t need to, and that’s it. With those people, you give them an inch and they’ll try to take a mile.” 

“So, you told them everything?” Yang said. 

“Yep,” Qrow replied, “there was a lot they wanted to discuss.”

 

_ “Well, Qrow,” Hwan stood, “we commend you and the students under your eye for defending Haven and stopping what no doubt would have been a second Fall of Beacon. But that being said, with your statements, and presence at the school last night when the attack started means that you had been planning on this since the moment you arrived to Mistral over a month ago. Don’t think we didn’t hear about you and the students being found in Kuroyuri, with you rushed to medics from being poisoned.” _

_ “If you all knew we were here, then why not just come forward?” Qrow shot back, “Seems like it’s your own fault then, if you wanted to know what was going on.” _

_ “Don’t try to turn this on us, Branwen,” Souma chimed, “The second you knew of this attack and planning to do something about it, you should have notified us.” _

_ “Oh really? And would you have actually done anything a month ago, if I showed up saying Haven was going to be attacked just like Beacon?” Qrow leaned back on a table behind him. “You would have gone two ways: you wouldn’t have believed it or you would have tried to up the defenses immediately and showcasing it to everyone, including the enemy.” _

_ Maral spoke now, “Even so, you kept it hidden from us and tried to handle it on your own with students no less. Non-certified huntsmen and huntresses!” _

_ Qrow sprang back up, pointing up at her, “Those kids already fought for their lives and defended one school, certified or not, they’re capable of handling themselves and a situation of higher danger than most.” Qrow paused, composing himself again. “Cinder and her crew are crafty and highly intelligent. They were patient and spent a long time planning the attack on Beacon, and in-turn, Ironwood’s paranoia about it and urgency had him play right into their hands in making the destruction easier. There was no telling how they’d try to attack Haven, so I followed Ozpin’s instructions that were left to myself and the other Headmasters. Simple as that.” _

 

“Well they weren’t happy.” Nora commented.

“Definitely,” Qrow agreed, “it went back and forth like that for awhile. Until we moved onto the next order of business.”

 

_ “The huntsman…….” Sevan stared down at the table, the lament and dismay upon her face showing, “And you’re sure it was all of them….?” _

_ “Yes,” Qrow confirmed, more humble than before, “that’s what the woman named “Cinder” said. Two of her accomplices wiped them all out on their missions; all traps.” The Council members continued to stare down at him, their stares telling him to continue. “I was searching for huntsmen and huntresses to help in defending Haven. Ones that I knew or had at least met once or twice and could trust.” _

_ “It is a terrible loss for the kingdom, and more so the families and friends of those huntsmen and huntresses.” The fifth council member finally spoke: Councilman Jun’ichi. The more quiet and straightforward member of the Mistral council. His long, dark blue hair clipped loosely in the back, longer strands and bangs hanging forward. “We will immediately send police to notify the families, and make preparations for a memorial service in honor of them. You said that you knew most of these huntsmen and huntresses, so let me say that I am sorry for your loss, Qrow.” _

_ Jun’ichi rose from his seat, eyes deadset into Qrow’s, “But now, we must discuss the events that transpired, leading to this tragedy.” _

_ Qrow looked down, brushing the side of his hair back, exhaling.  _

 

Qrow took a deep breath, “So, that’s all being set up in the kingdom, as well as investigating into all the missions to try and get more of a look into what happened at each one,  _ If _ they can find anything.”

“What are we going to do then?” Ruby asked. “With Haven under lockdown now, what do we do? We have the relic, so now what?”

Qrow paused again. “Oscar passed on a message from Oz last night before losing consciousness. We have to take the relic to Atlas.”

“WHAT?!” Everyone exclaimed. 

“Atlas?” Blake questioned.

“But, the borders are closed.” Weiss interjected. 

“It took us so long to get here, and now we’re leaving?” Nora said, looking at Qrow for an answer. 

“Okay, slow down.” Qrow put his hands out to settle them. “One thing at a time. We have to keep the relic out of Salem’s hands, and the best way to do that is to get it out of the kingdom and father away from her grasp. The best place right now is Atlas.” Qrow let of a huff of laughter. “He’s paranoid, but we can definitely trust Ironwood and knowing him, he’s probably beefed up the security all around the kingdom and the school. It’s out best option, and the closed borders could even work to our advantage of keeping Salem and her forces away from the relics.”

“How are we going to get through the closed borders?” Jaune asked.

“Nobody gets in or out without the council’s permission,” Qrow explained, “took some arguing with them, but the Mistral Council agreed to get some documentation for them to let us pass through the borders and into Atlas. Coming straight from the council itself, it should be enough. As soon as it comes in, we leave for Atlas.”

Ruby leaned forward in her seat. “But, Oscar’s still recovering. What if it gets here before then?”

“I’m counting on them to get the documents quickly because of the situation, but it will still take a little time. He’ll be fine and okay to travel by the time it comes. I’m sure of it.” Qrow answered. 

“And what about the school?” Ren asked. “Did they say what they would do about Haven?” Everyone nodded in agreement to the question, looking again to Qrow. 

“Haven is going to remain closed for the time being. Repairs have to be made, and on top of that a new Headmaster will have to be found.” Qrow fidgeted with the lid of his flask. 

No one caught Sun raising his head in question, blinking in confusion as Qrow continued.

“Leo’s betrayal was a shock to the whole council. The police searched his office and all of his files, everything, but they couldn’t find anything as to why he did it.” Qrow sighed, closing his eyes, “and on top of that…..”

 

_ “ _ _ What?” Qrow hissed, brow raised in shock and confusion.  _

_ Hwan nodded, “After you and the students left, the police did a full search of the school grounds to locate any stragglers from the White Fang and to find Leonardo. One of your students had told an officer in passing that they’d seen him flee towards his office, upon arriving at the room, Professor Lionheart was found dead.” _

_ Qrow looked down, shaking his head, muttering under his breath, “Dammit….” _

_ Sevan lifted a folder from the table, “The police closed off the entire school and area surrounding area further upon finding him,” She held out the folder down to him, “This is everything that they’ve found so far.” Qrow took the folder from her opening it. “There are photos, fair warning they may be a bit gruesome.” _

_ Qrow silently flipped through the papers inside, pausing and studying several. “Cause of death?” He asked, without looking up. _

_ “As you can probably see from the photos,” Sevan started, “He died from 2 stab wounds; one in his chest close to his throat, and another in his head, straight through the left eye.” _

_ “There were signs of struggle….” Qrow mentioned, reading one of the pages. _

_ Sevan nodded, “Weapon found on the other side of the room, marks on his arms, around his head and ankle suggesting something was wrapped around them. And there were scratches on the floor several feet from where he was killed.” _

_ “So, the working theory is that somebody was there, waited for him and killed him when he tried to make a run for it.” Qrow closed the folder. “Scratches on the floor can indicate he was dragged across the floor and the marks on the limbs suggest he was restrained. Whoever did it, was prepared to do it before he even got there.”  _

_ Jun’ichi spoke again, head resting on his hands intertwined under his chin. “Except that nothing shows that there was another person in the room. If there was, then they covered their tracks very well. And from your statements, this would mean that there could be another member of Cinder’s crew unaccounted for at the attack.” _

_ “Well Jun,” Qrow turned to him, “I think we can both agree that something’s strange about this killing. I want to see that office for myself, there’s something we’re missing.” _

_“Very well,” Jun’ichi nodded, “I will contact the police to grant you access to the crime scene and their investigation. But anything you find_ ** _will_** _have to be reported to us. Leonardo was a member of this council, so this is a council matter.”_

_ “Fine.” Qrow answered. “And I presume we’re keeping things quiet.” _

_ All of the council nodded, Hwan speaking, “A cover story will be made about Leonardo for the time being. The truth could cause panic and fracture the very tense peace of Mistral. But for sure,” Hwan and the other members stood, “Leonardo Lionheart will go down in Remnant’s history as a traitor in the eyes of the people he swore to protect.” The other members bowed their heads, the aura in the room being not one of mourning though. “May the Gods have mercy on his soul.” _

 

The room sat in silence. Shock written across each person’s face as Qrow finished. 

Weiss was the first to speak, “He-He’s really dead….”

“He betrayed us….” Jaune clenched his fists, “And now we can’t even find out why?”

“I’m going to check it out myself. We may find an answer, or we won’t.” Qrow said, “Now-”

“Stop!”

Everyone turned to Sun, who had shot up from his seat. His face was a mix of confusion and shock, but more so: hurt. “What are you talking about?!” He demanded. “Professor Lionheart’s not a traitor! There’s no way!” He shook his head. “I don’t believe this for one second!”

Blake’s ear flattened out, looking up at him from where she sat beside him, voice in realization,“Sun….”

“Kid,” Qrow took a step forward, gesturing around the room, “we were all there. He was working  _ with them _ .  **_He_ ** let them into the school to try and destroy it!”

“Even if he did, you don’t even know why!” Sun shot back, pointing a finger up at Qrow. “And they killed him! If he was really on their side, why would they kill him?! Huh?! He was probably blackmailed or something!”

Qrow cocked his head, looking Sun straight in the eye. “Because Salem uses people only until they aren’t useful to her anymore. She only needed Leo for Haven and the relic, and when that plan didn’t work, she didn’t have any other reason to use him anymore.”

“He was my Headmaster and my teacher,” Sun grit his teeth, “He wouldn’t do something like this, he wouldn’t help somebody attack Haven! His own school! That doesn’t make any sense!”

“Well, kid, unlike you who only knew Leo for less than a year as his student,” Qrow pointed to himself with his thumb, “I knew him for years and worked alongside Oz with him. I may not have agreed with him on everything, and I never would have wished this on him for his actions…...but he was a coward. You don’t think this stings me just as much you? I trusted him too!”

“Guys….” Ruby stood up, reaching out hesitantly toward the two. Yang took her by the wrist, pulling her back, shaking her head. 

Qrow took another step forward so now he was towering above Sun, looking down at him, “Letting Cinder and the others into the school wasn’t the only thing he did. The Vytal festival? Where Cinder and her crew began everything. You know how they even got into Beacon? Leo.” Qrow leaned in closer. “He’s been selling out everything to Salem since before then, he let them into Beacon and destroy it. Because he let them in, “Qrow pointed behind him at Jaune, Ren, and Nora, “one of their friends is dead!”

Sun lowered his head, brows furrowed in anger and dismay.

Qrow continued, “You want to know what else? Why it was just all of us defending Haven last night? Because he let Salem and her forces kill all the huntsmen and huntresses of Mistral! It wasn’t by his hand himself, but he bought the gun, loaded and cocked it, and just gave it to someone else to pull the trigger while he watched. Everything he did, he was doing to try and save himself, because  _ he was a coward _ .” Qrow backed off, crossing his arms, voice more calm. “If he really didn’t mean to do any of this, then why didn’t he try to tell Oz? Or any of us this entire time?”

Sun was quiet, his knuckles white as they were clenched by his sides, eyes down, blinking, trying to hold back tears, chest shaking. 

“I’m sorry.” Qrow whispered, expression more somber. 

Sun closed his eyes, without a word, storming out of the room. Ruby reached out for him as he passed, “Sun…?” Yang stood, touching her shoulder.

“Let him go, he needs some space right now.”

Qrow exhaled, “I think that’s all we need to talk about tonight…..” Taking out his flask again, Qrow walked off, going upstairs.

 

Everyone else sat in awkward silence. Nora twiddled her fingers in her lap. “What should we do? Do think he’ll be okay?”

“Qrow was a little harsh.” Jaune said, crossing his arms, leaning back. 

“But it  _ was _ the truth…” Yang said, voice low. “Obviously it was hard to hear, and I don’t blame Sun for being upset.”

“I forgot that he was from Haven….” Weiss added. “All of us being students of Beacon, we didn’t even think about it.”

“I’ve only known him for a few months,” Ilia spoke up, from where she leaned on the couch behind it, “But, i’ve never seen him like that. He’s always so upbeat and positive.”

Blake stands from her seat. “I should go talk to him. Make sure he’s okay…..” She leaves the room, heading downstairs to the back door. Yang’s eyes followed her as she went, hard stare, blinking. Her head lowered, gaze distant as soon as she was gone. 

“Yang?” Ruby looked up at her, concerned. 

“I’m going to go work on Bumblebee,” Yang said, moving away from the group, brushing her hair back, “Need to get her ready for Atlas.”

Weiss fidgeted in her seat, silent as Yang left, leaving the others in more awkward silence. 

“So ummmm,” Nora broke the silence again, “Are those two okay? They seem a little….awkward.”

“It  _ has _ been awhile since they’ve seen each other,” Ren mentioned.

Ruby rubbed the back of her head, “I thought she was fine, I mean, she seemed okay when Blake came to us last night.”

“After everything,” Jaune said, “it’s probably a lot to see each other again, maybe they just need a little space from each other right now.”

“Haven’t they had space from each other for almost a year now?” Ilia commented.

“It’s only been one day,” Ren said, “and with everything that happened today, we’ll just have to see how things are tomorrow.”

  
  


Blake stepped down the stairs, hand trailing along the wall, peering into the training room. The lights were dimmed, doors opened to outside, letting some light into the yard. Slowly, she stepped through the room, stopping at the door, looking out. 

On the other side of the yard, she spotted him. Sun stood, his back to her, leaning on the railing, tail hanging limp, swaying slowly. Fireflies lit up across the yard, the night breeze, rustling the trees in the yard, and Sun’s popped collar. Blake took a step forward toward him, calling out softly. 

“Sun….?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I was so excited to get to it, because of getting to write Sun's stuff and everything going forward. (AKA, the setup to me is done, and we can get into the juicy/fun stuff). 
> 
> My goal is to finish this fic before the V6 premiere, so I can work on making a better schedule for updates and writing~


	6. Answers in the Dark Pt.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blake goes to try and comfort Sun, and comes to learn much more about him than before.

“Sun….?” Blake approached slowly, waiting for him to acknowledge her. She stopped halfway across the yard, watching him. After a moment, an answer came, emotionless, and without looking at her.

“Hey, Blake….”

The address gave her the signal it was alright to come forward. She hovered her hand over his shoulder, gauging the vibe from him. When he didn’t move away, rather slacked his shoulders, she rested her hand down.

“Sun,” She leaned over trying to look at his face in the dark, “Are you alright?”

Again, she waited for him to answer.

“No….Blake,” His voice sounded rough.

He turned toward her, Blake could feel herself flinch back a little at the sight of his face. It didn’t even seem like it was Sun she was looking at. His face, tear-stained and full of sorrow. Blue eyes that were always so bright now were dull and dark. Rosy cheeks that blushed at many moments were instead pale, the red now around his eyes.

“I just don’t understand.” He continued. “I can’t believe it, Professor Lionheart being a traitor? How does that make any sense?!”

Her other hand immediately moved to take his arm, pulling herself closer to him, the hand that was on his shoulder now touching his cheek, catching a tear that had been slowly trailing down his face. He shuddered under her touch, exhaling a shaky breath.

“Talk to me, then.” Blake said. “Why this is making you feel like this.”

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Feeling his tension release more, she removed his hand from his face, but kept her hand on his arm, gradually moving it into his hand.

“You know that I grew up in Vacuo,” he began, opening his eyes, “Someplace that’s _very_ different than here.” He turned to lean back over the railing, looking into the city below. “I came to Haven, because I wanted something different, y’know? Vacuo was my home, and I loved it there, but I wanted to see more of the world, and going to Haven Academy was my ticket. I was so excited!” He huffed out a breath, shaking his head. “I’ve always wanted to take you to Vacuo, you’d probably like it. Being in Menagerie really reminded me of it.”

“How so?” Blake asked.

“In Vacuo, it doesn’t matter who are what you are. Nobody cares if you’re human _or_ faunus. The only thing that matters there is being able to live there. Sure, it’s no shining city, but if you handle it, then you’re completely welcome.”

“That actually does sound pretty nice.” Blake commented, receiving a short smile from Sun.

“Back in Vacuo,” he continued, “I was never afraid or ashamed of being a faunus. The whole idea of people hating me for that was never really given much thought. At least….” He paused, “until I got to Haven.”

 

_Crowds hustled through the station, many rushing to their departures, others getting off trains in arrival to the city. Vendors littering the area, trying to gain the attention of any passerby. On the far side, the door of a train opened, the passengers spilling out onto the platform._

_Stepping onto the platform, Sun stopped, chest held high, sucking a big breath. “Finally!” He exclaimed. Backpack slung over one shoulder, and folded Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang resting on the other. His gaze floated all around as he strolled through the station, taking in all the sights. “Wow….this is way different than the Vacuo station!” He stopped in his tracks, smiling wide. “We don’t even have a train station in Vacuo!”_

_A push from behind, caused him to stumble forward. A man in a hat, luggage trailing behind him, moving past him calling out, “Hey, out of the way! Some people have places to be!”_

_Sun rubbed the back of his head, stepping to the side.“Whoops, my bad! Sorry sir.”_

_“Animals…” The man muttered readjusting his grip on his luggage and hurrying off._

_Sun shrugged, continuing on through the station. He walked around for another five minutes, before stopping, scratching his head. “Okay, so this place is really nice…..but where’s the exit?” He dropped his backpack, hands on his head. “Oh gods, what if i’m stranded here forever?!” Straightening back up he took a breath. “Okay, we can figure this out, just gotta ask somebody.”_

_He turned reaching out to try and gain a passing woman’s attention. “Hey, uh, excuse me, but do you know-”_

_She scoffed, walking away quickly, eyes on her scroll._

_He tried again with a man, who brushed him off as well. Person after person passing him by, ignoring him, or taking one look at him and making more of an effort to move away._

_“Ugh!” Sun groaned, “Geez, I just want to know how to get out of this place!” He threw his arms out wide._

 

_THWACK_

 

_His arm collided with something, a noise of surprise coming from whatever it was, and the sound of something hitting the floor. Sun jerked back, looking to see what he’d hit._

_“Ow, what the heck, dude….” A boy about his age, stood, rubbing his nose. He had blue hair, shaved on both sides, a pair of old goggles resting on top of it. His outfit was very basic; a red jacket, and jean, a dress shirt and tie, just peeking out of the jacket though._

_“Sorry, man.” Sun stepped forward, apologizing, “Didn’t see you there. You okay?”_

_The boy lifted his head, answering, “Yeah, i’m fine. Besides,” He stepped forward reaching down to grab a book on the ground. Must have been what his arm collided with initially. “I wasn’t really watching where I was going either.” He stopped as he stood up, fully looking at Sun now. He smiled. “Digging the look. Open shirt and the chains, very cool.”_

_“Oh, thanks.” Sun smiled, “Say, uh, you wouldn’t happen to know where the exit is to this place would you?”_

_“Are you serious?” The boy laughed a little._

_“Yeah, first time in Mistral, so kind of don’t know my way around yet.” Sun rubbed the back of his hair._

_“Why don’t you just follow me then,” the boy offered, “I’m leaving the station too.”_

_“Really? Thanks!” Sun scooped up his backpack. “Name’s Sun by the way, you?”_

_“Neptune.”_

 

“I always thought you and Neptune had met at Haven.” Blake smiled at the story.

“Yeah, who would have thought that the guy I accidentally hit in the face in a train station would be a part of my team. Not to mention being the leader at that.” Sun let out a huff of laugher.

“Well, Ruby and Weiss ended up being teammates after Ruby blew up some dust in Weiss’s face in the courtyard of Beacon. So, it’s not that hard to believe.” Blake paused. “So your first day in Mistral wasn’t the easiest.”

“Yeah, I got my first taste of what being a faunus in a big city was like, even if I didn’t realize it then.” Sun said, slipping his hand out of Blake’s, folding them together in front of him. “Couldn’t even ask a simple question to get directions.” He sighed. “But that was just the start.”

Blake leaned forward on the railing, a silent sign it was okay to continue.

“At first it was just looks and under breath remarks. But upon my first days at Haven, some were outright open about not liking that I was a faunus. Whether it was comments on my lifestyle, what I looked like, or even how I acted. And they didn’t even really know me. They just looked and saw my tail. Heck there were some people that didn’t even know I was a faunus at first, but then they’d see my tail and suddenly the conversations were over. The way they looked at me was different. It was frustrating.” Sun’s tail swished back and forth, twitching slightly. “I didn’t understand why they acted like that. All I had was a tail and able to see in the dark. Why did that make me some kind of freak?”

 

_“Okay, new team!” Sun jumped up on the bed, standing above his new teammates. “I think tonight we have a little bonding experience!”_

_“I mean, we just fought for our lives together earlier,” Scarlet said, sitting on his bed, “What more could we do today?”_

_“I’m glad you asked!” Sun hopped off the bed. “We do the one thing that bonds us guys the best!”_

_“And that would be….?” Neptune asked._

_“Oh man, you guys in Mistral don’t get out much do you.” Sun said, “We go grab some chow!”_

_A wave of “ohs” echoed through the room._

_“Plus,” Sun added, “this gives us a chance to explore the city a bit!”_

_Neptune stood up from his chair, “There’s a section of the marketplace near here with a bunch of different little restaurants, we could go there and look.”_

_“Great idea! Let’s go!”_

 

 _~_ _~_

_“This place looks pretty nice.” Sun sniffed the air, “Smells good too!”_

_Sage spoke up from the back, “I heard from some locals it’s a good place. Might be a bit busy though with all the other new students out tonight.”_

_“Well then let’s get our names in then!” Sun clapped his hands together, opening the door. He stepped up to the podium where a host stood, writing in a couple in front of them. They stepped away following a waiter to their table. Sun smiled, taking the spot, “Hey there, could we get a table for four, please?”_

_The man raised his eyes, setting his pen down. “I’m sorry, sir, but i’m afraid I can’t do that.”_

_“Hey, I get it if it’s busy.” Sun replied. “We heard this place was really nice. We don’t mind having to wait for a table. Right guys?”_

_“That is not what I mean.” The man pointed towards the front door. “I’m guessing you didn’t read the sign, or if you were even able to.”_

_The group turned around, even through the sliding door, the ink of the paper could still be seen from the other side. No one had to guess what it said, even with it backwards._

_Sun looked down for a moment, brows furrowed, before bringing his head up again, trying to smile. “Come on, man. We’re students of Haven.” Sun reached into his pocket, trying to bring out his scroll with his ID. “Here-”_

_The man held his hand up, pushing the scroll down. “We have a policy here, and it is our right to refuse service.” He peered over Sun at Scarlet, Sage, and Neptune, a lighter look, “Now, if you gentlemen would like, I can have a table prepared for you-”_

_“No thanks.” Neptune sternly interrupted. He, Sage, and Scarlet already at Sun’s side, Neptune taking Sun’s arm, leading them out of the restaurant._

_Once they were outside, Sun sighed. “Sorry, guys….” He looked up and down the street. “Looks like we won’t really be able to get anything from around here…”_

_“Who cares,” Scarlet shrugged, placing a hand on his hip. “If they’re going to have “policies” like that, who wants to eat there?”_

_“I’ve got a better idea.” Neptune spoke up, “We’ve all had Mistral food before, but you’re from Vacuo. Think you can think up any dishes from over there we could try? We can just run to a couple vendors to grab ingredients.”_

_Sun immediately perked up, “That sounds like a great idea! And I know just what we can make too! Hope you like spicy food, cause Vacuo’s got some of the best, hopefully they have geist peppers here.”_

 

“It’s really good that you had those three with you.” Blake said, brushing at her hair in the breeze, “reminds me of how it was with Ruby, Weiss, and Yang after they found out I was a faunus.”

“Yeah,” Sun nodded, wiping at his nose, “those three were like that from the start. None of them cared that I was a faunus, not to mention from Vacuo. They accepted me no problem, and they were there if somebody didn’t. Because of them there were times i forgot about worrying.” He looked down again. “But…”

“But, what?” Blake asked.

“There was a time, Blake….that I was actually terrified to be a faunus. And not just being on guard everywhere I went. I was scared to even leave the school grounds.” Sun confessed, looking at for a moment.

Blake looked back at him, confused. Her expression asking him to explain, but not wanting to outright ask.

Sun straightened up, turning to face her fully. “You know that I was familiar with the White Fang before I met you. I heard about them even before coming to Mistral, but they never had any influence or action in Vacuo, really.”

“Are you saying that you had a run-in with them while in Mistral before?” Blake’s ears drooped slightly, looking up at him.

“It wasn’t the White Fang themselves……..”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter finally! Still busy with school, but found some time to write and update. This chapter is split into two parts for length and for the content that will be in the second part. Several things were added into this part to make it much longer than I initially thought and deciding to make it two parts (And so you all could have a new chapter already). 
> 
> Thank you for being patient as always with updates to this story!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. I decided to start things slow and it seemed like a good ending place for the chapter. I will try to update as timely as possible, but I am busy with college classes and other things to work on. 
> 
> I love feedback and critiquing so as I may improve on my writing, so commenting is appreciated! Don't be shy! <3


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